Yep! It is still winter here at Fort Cedar! We are having another glorious snow day. I know some people don't like snow days. They say they would rather be out of school early in the summer when it is nice. But for me, I love this chance to stay cozy and warm, to make delicious comfort food and read. I have a pot of chili simmering on the stove and the snow is still pouring down! I am trying my hand at a made up veggie chili....not sure yet!

I have been a little more productive today than I usually am on snow days. I have cleaned my kitchen and packed away my dishes...yes packed them away. Ok, so I am having a very hard time keeping up with kitchen chores through the week, then I am faced with a big mess on the weekends. So, here is my plan, inspired by another blogger,everyone picked out 1 coffee cup,1 glass, 1plastic tumbler and 1 bowl. I left out 4 plates and that's it! I was surprised that everyone went along with this...but none of us like a messy kitchen. I will keep you posted on how it goes!

I hope you all are staying warm and safe wherever you are!

Enjoying Fort Cedar with a joyful heart,
Gigi

Whew! I made it!

I made it through our first week back! It was really terrific to see all of my students and hear their stories of Christmas and snow. I will admit I was pretty tired by Thursday! I believe this semester is going to be fabulous. It is scary and thrilling to know it is Big C's last semester of high school.
I am enjoying my Bible reading...this really changes my perspective each day. One of my colleagues told me about his devotion one morning this week. "You know my devotion this morning said to rejoice in the Lord, not in my surroundings, not in my work, rejoice in the LORD!" I have held on to that everyday. I am seeking to fulfill His purpose and not seek my own comfort or agenda and the funny thing is...I am happier. I am looking each day to praise God for the good things, because they are always there.
Hope you all are having a joyful weekend and looking for quiet moments.

Rejoicing in the Lord,
Gigi

Catching up is hard to do!

Ok so make sure your coffee or tea mug is full this might be long!

The seasons have definitely changed here at Fort Cedar! We have had a busy and stressful fall. We have had lots of changes at school this fall and they have really sapped our energy. Big C has been busy with college stuff...filling out applications and writing essays. I think he has made his decision....and the winner is....Evangel University! I am thrilled that he wants to attend so close to home and now we will just continue to pray for the opportunity to play golf at Evangel. Little C finished his first cross country season and is now lifting weights after school. Bob and I are adjusting to the changes required of us to be the best we can be for our students!

In November I was blessed with a trip to Rome! It was my second time there and I had a wonderful time! It was a conference for teachers that travel with students. It was such a nice time to be with adults...I didn't have to count heads once! Now don't get me wrong, I love traveling with my students and watching them grow and change and marvel at God's great creation, but it was a joy for me to just take in the view and have some time for my own thoughts!

Of course we went to all the hot spots! The Colosseum, the Pantheon and Trevi Fountain but I did a few things I had never done before. We visited the catacombs, which was a creepy but interesting experience. The reason travel thrills me so is that even if you have been somewhere before, each visit brings its own excitement.

I made some great friends and special memories. I was in Rome for 3 full days and returned home to another conference! I landed at the airport, ate some fast food with Bob, Big and Little C and Mom and then back in the car for a 2 hour drive. When I reached the conference location my colleagues aka wonderful friends were standing in the parking lot, in the rain, waiting for me! I thought I would cry after such a tiring 30 straight travel hours to see them standing there!

In December as we were preparing for the holidays and looking forward to some much needed time off we were heartbroken with the loss of our faithful companion, our dog Skippy. He had a cancerous mass on his spleen. He almost made it to his 9th birthday. Skip was a lovable and loyal dog and we loved him very much! It was a very difficult time and we miss him everyday! Our toy rat terrier Molly would whine and wander the house looking for him, which of course was difficult to watch. We decided that we would show her as much attention as possible and take her with us whenever we could! We were not ready to add another dog so soon but God had other plans for us, which came in the very small package of a rescue dog named Holly! She is a yorkie-shi tzu mix and very sweet. She has brought healing for man and beast at Fort Cedar! Molly was terrified of her for the first few days, but they are the best buds now!

We had a very relaxing Christmas break, which is still going as we are on our 4th snow day! We celebrated Christmas day with Bob's family. We had all kinds of goodies and 2 kinds of warm soup! and way more presents than we deserved! Bob's dad didn't make it due to weather and we really missed him. We spent time with Dad and Linda, delicious sandwiches and a fun time at the movies on Saturday and had a great dinner with Mom and Frank on Sunday. Our New Years Eve was our usual fun time with our friends, lots of food and just enjoying each others company.

So, here we are, enjoying our extra time at Fort Cedar and wondering when we will start our new semester! Thanks for stopping by, please leave a comment so that I know you were here! I hope you are having a blessed start to 2010!

With a joyful heart,

Gigi